Norb® (Nutri-Orb) bulb is a specialized White-Light LED grow bulb that provides the right spectrum for growing plants. Norb helps plants thrive and Look Right Under White Light.™

LiveWall developed this unique light to help ensure that indoor plants grow in a healthy manner. Plants are a lot like people and pets, the need proper nutrition to thrive, and the Norb Botanic is designed to provide the light-nutrition that plants need in a comfortable color for people living and working among them.

They fit in a standard socket. The bulbs are approximately 5-1/4″ long and they are 4-11/16″ in diameter at the widest point.

Conventional LED Grow Light

Frequently Asked Questions about Norb

Lighting is critical to the success of your living wall. In nearly every indoor application, supplemental lighting will be necessary to ensure the proper intensity and spectrum for plant growth. Designers should specify fixtures, bulbs and placement to ensure that the living wall is evenly lit and receives the full spectrum of lighting required to grow healthy plants.

What light intensity is required for indoor green walls?livewall2018-08-31T16:22:00+00:00

Light intensity is a measure of light energy hitting the plant surface and is also very important to plant health. For traditional interior lighting applications, light intensity is discussed in terms of foot-candles of light energy. While foot-candles is not the preferred measure of light intensity by horticultural scientists (who prefer a measurement in terms of “photo active radiation”), we have found that foot-candles will suffice if a proven light source, such as LiveWall’s Norb® bulb, or one of the other recommended methods, is chosen. And, for most tropical foliage plantings 200-400 foot-candles of light energy hitting the foliage, is sufficient.

LiveWall, LLC has developed a plant selection and pairing guide for indoor plants based upon their lighting and water needs, and growth habit. This LiveWall design guide should be consulted for the correct light intensity for the type of plants that one intends to use. We have categorized the plants into lighting needs as follows:

Bright Light

Indoor location with direct light from a south or west exposure where the plants receive 2 or more hours of direct sun, but preferably not during the hottest part of the day.

Artificial Bright Light is approximately equal to a four tube florescent fixture in close proximity to the planting, in the range of 400 to 600+ foot candles, for 12 to 15 hours per day.

Medium Light

Indoor location with direct light for a couple of hours in the morning or afternoon (from east or west facing windows), or from a south facing window provided the location is several feet interior of south facing windows.

Artificial Medium Light is approximately equal to a two tube florescent fixture, 2 or 3 feet from the foliage, in the range of 100 to 400 foot candles for 12 to 15 hours per day.

Low Light

Low Light pertains to an indoor location that is not close to windows or supplemental lighting—typically a north or east exposure.

Artificial Low Light is enough to read a newspaper, in the range of 25 to 100 foot candles for 12 to 15 hours per day.

For a copy of the LiveWall Indoor Plant Design Guide, contact us at sales@livewall.com or call 877-554-4065.

What type of lighting fixtures and bulbs are best for vertical gardens?livewall2018-08-31T16:19:07+00:00

Light fixtures should be adjustable, for direction, and are typically located in front of the living wall and attached to or suspended from the ceiling. Occasionally, they are located at the bottom or sides of the LiveWall structure, to create proximity to the plants, and thereby provide sufficient light intensity across the entire wall surface. Often times, track lighting is used as it is contemporary, comes with many fixture options, and is relatively inexpensive.

In respect to the light source (bulb), the key considerations are proper light spectrum and light intensity. Plants tend to respond to blue and red wavelengths and in proportion that is not available from incandescent or typical office-type LED lights. There are, of course, LED grow lights composed of red and blue diodes—but they tend to cast a purple light which looks odd, unnatural and unattractive.

For this reason, LiveWall LLC developed the Norb® (Nutri-Orb) bulb, a specialized White-Light LED grow bulb that provides the right spectrum for growing plants. With Norb® bulbs, the plants can be healthy and “look right under white.”

Track lighting offers flexibility

This living wall installation is lit by 12 total Norb® bulbs directed at the 8’ x 8’ and 11’ x 11’ walls. These bulbs are angled from track lighting attached to the 12 foot ceiling. This configuration provides plenty of light and serves as an example of about how many lights would be needed for such an installation.

Where on the ceiling should lighting be affixed?

While each light source may have a different beam angle and intensity, it is important to keep in mind not only the amount of distance that the planters sit from the wall, but that the plants may extend from the planters, particularly if billowing plants are selected.

As a rule of thumb, when using the LiveWall Norb® brand bulbs, we recommend setting the track lighting fixture back 7′ from the wall it will light. This should allow ample room for the vegetation and good light distribution.

The following lights also support plant growth

Combination High Pressure Sodium / Metal Halide lights are usually quite powerful and best suited for larger walls. They are excellent for growing plants as they have a light spectrum that is relatively similar to the sun.

Metal Halide lights have a good spectrum for growing foliage. They contain a lot of blue light in their spectrum, but appear white in color. They usually require a ballasted fixture; however, there are a few, typically 25 watt, internally-ballasted bulbs in the marketplace—which are suitable to use in conventional track-lighting fixtures.

Florescent lights have a good plant growing spectrum, but they may not provide sufficient intensity if mounted from a distance, so ensure close placement to the living wall. These are typically only acceptable for small applications, and it may be difficult to find attractive fixtures to pair with them.

The following lights are not recommended for growing plants

Halogen lights do not have the proper spectral components for growing plants.

High Pressure Sodium lights lack blue light in their spectrum needed to support indoor foliage plants and the light they emit tends to look yellow. Their spectrum supports flowering, and therefore they may be a good choice for indoor plants when combined with a Metal Halide light.

Ordinary LED lights, i.e. LED lights that are commonly used in office or exterior lighting—typically with color temperatures of 3000K-4500K—ARE NOT SUITABLE FOR PLANT GROWTH. If LED lighting is desired, the LiveWall®Norb® (Nutri-Orb) LED bulb should be specified.

How long should indoor plants be artificially lit?livewall2018-08-31T16:58:13+00:00

Plants need a dark period to rest and prevent metabolic fatigue. Therefore, grow lights should only be run 12-15 hours maximum per day—typically from 7 AM to 8 or 9 PM (to mimic light conditions in tropical regions). The rest of the time, they should be in darkness, or near darkness.

If security lighting is required in the area of the LiveWall, it should be of very low intensity and not directed toward the plants.

Do not run Norb® bulbs (or any bulb labelled as supporting plant growth) on the green wall for more than 15 hours per day.

We recommend running the lighting for the living walls on a dedicated outlet programmed to run for 14 hours per day.